The Epiphany of our Lord

Posted on by Cassie

The Magi lived outside the Holy Land.  They saw the star and knew something very special had happened to the world.  St. Matthew tells us that they saw the star and knew they had to follow it.

If you want to find a practical lesson today, think about the message of the star.  God sees to it that people who really care, who are really looking for right answers, will find Jesus.  Jesus  Himself said: “time of the star” will surely emerge, as it did for the Magi.

God makes sure  that the gospel of love reaches out to all people everywhere.  What is important is that we who have experienced a time of the star in our lives can help others—by our witness, kindness, service – to see the star of Christ.

All around our neighborhood there are many people for various reasons who have never taken the time to look up to see if there is a star in the heavens for them.  Our joy in Gospel living, our service to others, even the very way we speak or act, can help these people look up.  We call this evangelization: drawing others to search for and experience the light and warmth of the Star of  Bethlehem.  This Epiphany we ask God to help us in this effort.

God Bless

Msgr. Powell

 

Solemnity of the Holy Family

Posted on by Cassie

This week’s focus is on the family.  The importance of the family cannot be overstated or over emphasized.  The family is where we discover what it means to be human, what are our strengths and weaknesses, where we experience love and forgiveness, where we learn about relationships, unity, sacrifice, loving others, accepting others, where we learn values and attitudes and trust and how to handle stress and how to be responsible.  Family is where we learn to get along with one another.  All these important learning tasks are hopefully learned in a family that is healthy.  The success of society depends on the health of the family.

Today we celebrate the importance of another family, our parish family.  Here too we discover  who we are as God’s children, how to trust God and to love God and one another.  We learn values here too, values that are intended to lead us to eternal life.  Hopefully we learn how to give as well as take, how to forgive as well as be forgiven.  Here we gather around a family table to be fed, not with perishable food but with food that will nourish us eternally.  Our faith community is just as important in its own way as our family of origin.  And the Lords’ supper that we share just as important to our spiritual well being as being together and eating together as a family is to our emotional well being.

Families are strengthened by their meals together.  The Eucharist is our family’s weekly meal.  St Paul gives a wonderful list of virtues that enhance and enrich our relationships within our families:  compassion, kindness, gentleness, humility, patience, forgiveness, etc.  He tells us to be grateful.  He used the word ”Eucharisteo.”  He tells us we are to become “Eucharisteo.”  The Holy Eucharist allows us to perfectly fulfill His mandate.  It is a perfect act of thanksgiving because as God’s children, we give thanks to God in union with His Son, Jesus Christ.  May we be strong and healthy families, full of thankfulness, and may we rejoice one day in the home of our Father in Heaven.

God Bless

Msgr. Powell